Never Wilt: The Life-Eater
by CrazeStasis
Summary: Four years after the fall of Beacon and the death of a young huntress, her teammates have now moved on with their lives. When a book tells them a mysterious tale of a hero and a "Life-Eater," They return to the school that they couldn't save more than four years ago in search of answers. Little do they know that their search will only give them fear and a lost, familiar face.
1. Never Wilt: Prologue

**I do not own RWBY or other known Rooster Teeth productions. All such products belong to Rooster Teeth and only Rooster Teeth.**

* * *

" _Status report!"_

" _Sir! We've been fighting to exhaustion for days. We've nearly run out of Dust, and casualties are rising by the day!"_

" _ **What's going on…**_ "

 _She saw Yang crush the Beowolf's skull in with a simple punch, before moving on to the next one. To her right, Blake cut off the head of one other Beowolf before moving onto an Ursa, which roared in pain as a large gash appeared on the left side of its abdomen._

 _She turned to what was in front of her, and sighed in exasperation at the enemy in front of her…_

" _Another one of you…"_

 _She swallowed and charged at the Boarbatusk, amplifying her speed with her glyphs._

" _ **Oh yeah, I remember this...wait...no. No, no, no, no…**_ "

" _Gimme a break. These guys just don't quit…"_

" _They're Grimm, they're stupid like that."_

 _Yang breathed heavily, leaning over with an arm hanging limp. Blake was standing up fine, but fatigue was definitely setting in for her too._

 _She looked behind at team JNPR. Nora was sitting down tiredly, the only contrast to this being the large grin she gave off. Ren was surprisingly fine looking, but scars and cuts covered his clothes. Pyrrha was kneeling down on one leg, gathering air for her lungs-she was also the one with the most cuts and bruises out of the team. Jaune was also kneeling, and breathing just as heavily...though, unlike the rest of the team, he seemed completely fine nonetheless._

" _You guys alright?"_

 _Jaune nodded. "Yeah...just chipper."_

 _She turned her head back to the sight in front of her, a horde of Grimm started gathering, readying for another attack._

 _She forced herself to her feet, pointing Myrtenaster towards them. "Ruby...where are you?"_

" _ **No! don't come here, don't come here!**_ "

" _I'm gonna die!"_

 _...Or at least, she thought she would, when the Ursa's head came clean off from out of nowhere…_

 _She looked over, and saw a girl-who wore black and red clothing and a red hood that was currently over her head. As the hood fell off her head, it revealed dark reddish hair and silver eyes with a furrowed look._

" _Ruby!"_

" _ **NO! Get away from here! Don't do it!**_ "

" _Wha-What are you saying?"_

" _I'm saying I'll hold them off-you guys get back to the bullhead…"_

" _What?! No, we're not leaving you!"_

" _You're all tired, out of Dust, and a few of you are wounded. I'm only having one third of the problems you have, so its better if I stay behind and hold them off…"_

" _You dunce, you'll be killed!"_

" _No I won't…"_

 _The girl in the red hood turned to her. A warm smile was spread across her face, and bright sparks of life seemed to radiate from her silver eyes…_

" _...I'll be right behind you, especially you guys…" she nodded towards the rest of team RWBY. "...We're a team after all, right? We'll always watch each others backs, even in this chaos…"_

" _Ruby…" She stared at their leader-her partner, the words she wanted to say to her dead in her throat._

 _Ruby turned to Yang, the two made a silent agreement before the oldest of the sisters hugged the other. Then Yang turned to Weiss, bringing her back from her shock as she grabbed her and started carrying her towards the Bullhead just a few kilometers out from their location. Weiss tried to resist, but considering it was Yang that was carrying her, it was damn near impossible._

 _She could only watch as they distanced themselves from their leader. Weiss held out a hand in Ruby's direction, all the while demanding that Yang take her back…_

 _...She silently refused, and continued running behind the rest of the group. Not turning back to watch as her sister sprinted towards the Grimm, cutting off the arm of a Beowolf in the process…_

" _ **No! Stop, run away! Ruby...RUBY!**_ "

* * *

Weiss Schnee bolted up from her bed, breathing heavily and in a sweat.

She looked around, it was her room, in her apartment in the Kingdom of Atlas. It wasn't that hellish forest from those few years ago, where they fought for days and days. It wasn't Beacon, which was now simply a ruin-courtesy of a now imprisoned Cinder Fall.

No, it was her apartment, recently bought, recently furnished...all just her apartment...and a visitor...in the same bed as her...naked...and now fully awake from her little panic attack.

"Is everything alright?"

That's right. She had been working all week, and finally had the weekend to herself. She decided to party earlier that day, met this woman, went to a few other nightclubs, had fun, then came back to her apartment and...had a "fun" night.

She wondered how much she drank, or if she was still sober when it happened. This was the fifth time during her stay in Atlas afterall.

"Yes...everything's fine...everything..."

The woman blinked, before shrugging and laying back down on the bed. Weiss looked away from her and stared at the nearby wall, before rejoining her "friend" in sleep. As she started to fall even deeper into slumber, her name crossed through her mind-faint, but unforgettable...

" _Ruby…"_

* * *

 _Five years ago, there was a school for Huntsmen and Huntresses: Beacon Academy._

 _During this time, the school was dedicated to training and preparing them for battle against the creatures of darkness-the Grimm._

 _All was fine before then…_

 _Then, during that very year, a young girl named Ruby Rose stopped a robbery at a Dust shop. Due to the spectacular showing of her superb skills, the girl was officially enrolled into Beacon by Headmaster Ozpin personally._

 _And during her time there, Team RWBY was formed, consisting of Ruby Rose, Schnee Dust Company heiress Weiss Schnee, enigmatic-and later revealed to be a former White Fang member-faunus Blake Belladonna, and Ruby's older sister Yang Xiao Long._

 _They passed their initiation, attended classes. They had all sorts of adventures, pitfalls, and laughs. And they gathered all kinds of friends, acquaintances, and enemies…_

 _...One of those enemies was Cinder Fall…_

 _Infiltrating the school as a student from Haven Academy. Cinder instigated a plan to destroy Beacon and the kingdom of Vale. This way their "queen" could remake it in their own image without a problem._

 _Initially, the first time the plan played out it failed-undone by Team RWBY, as well as various students and staff from Beacon..._

 _...The second time however, would end in utter devastation._

 _The plan would go on once again, as intended. This time in multiple areas surrounding Beacon Academy, and in important parts of the city._

 _The Grimm took to the streets, attacking citizens and huntsmen alike. Their overwhelming numbers-drawn by the negative emotions of people-gave them a foothold into the city within hours._

 _The fighting would last for days and days, each one suffering casualty after casualty._

 _From that point, all seemed lost...until Team RWBY returned._

 _Away on a mission when the attack happened, Team RWBY arrived on the scene eight days afterward. With their arrival, they managed to force the Grimm back away from Beacon and Vale-back into the forests they originally dwelled._

 _The day was once again saved...but not without cost._

 _Beacon Academy and at least one fifth of Vale were destroyed in the ensuing battle. After much deliberation and thought, the council walled off the destroyed areas-promising to rebuild it sometime later-and left them to crumble._

 _The number of casualties were in the hundreds at best, thirty seven of those being Huntsmen and Huntresses. Among those was the very hero that turned the battle around in humanity's favor…_

 _...Ruby Rose was dead…_

* * *

"It should be around here somewhere?"

Yang Xiao Long wasn't really the type to read books.

They were something that required you to sit down and look at them patiently. Force you to stop for a minute-pause your life and rest. They couldn't fight, they could be destroyed rather easily, and only a few involved going on adventures-none of which she could go on herself.

There were exceptions, however. If the books in question either led to adventure or something of importance to her, then she'd read it without a second thought...even if she had some problems at first.

There were also the times she read to...Ruby...during their childhood.

She stopped, stood there silently for a minute...then sighed and shook her head. " _Come on back Yang, no need to get all mopey now...she wouldn't be happy with you being mopey…"_

Focusing back on the shelf, Yang went past book after book. Looking for a specific book she heard about a few weeks ago.

" _RVB, no. X-Ray and Vavs, nope. The Necronomicon...huh?"_

She continued like this for several hours, going through book after book on shelf after shelf. After an hour and a half of searching, she was just about to give up and go home…

" _Lazer Team...no. Ten Little Roosters, not even close...The Tale of the-that's it!"_

She pulled the book out from the shelf. It was rather old and surprisingly dusty. She wiped the dust from the cover, revealing a much darker hardcover with somewhat dulled gold trimmings. The book had a small lock on the opening of the book, meaning you'd need to have a key to open it…

" _And this lock can't just be broken off with brute strength either…"_

She reached into her pocket and pulled out a grey, ornate key from her pocket. She had gone through several areas looking for this key, and had just managed to find it in an old ruin around four weeks ago. She would've gotten back sooner...if three of those weeks weren't spent fighting through Grimm just to get back to civilization.

" _At least they were persistent."_

Yang mentally chuckled as she inserted the key into the lock. With a simple twist, the lock clicked, and instantly turned to black powder that fell onto the floor.

" _Dust infused with faint traces of various metals, including steel and titanium, all to make a padlock. When first built, it remains sturdy even as it's locked, then when unlocked, it falls apart and turns back into used up-and therefore useless-Dust, which dissolves after an hour or so. The reason why they're considered excellent locks is because of their ability to channel the Dust of their choice...most commonly lightning based Dust…"_

" _...Damn lightning based Dust padlocks…"_

Repressing the memory from two years back, Yang opened the book and started skimming through the foreward of the book-beginning with the cover name.

 _The Tale of the Hero and the Life-Eater._

 _Before you read this book, I-the humble author of this tale-has witnessed this very story with their own eyes. The Life-Eater mentioned in this story very much exists, walking among us without problem or heed._

 _I urge you, if you want your safety in ignorance kept intact, stop right here-don't read any farther, just lock the book back up, drop it off somewhere no one else will find it, and go back to your home. You're general safety (at least as best as Remnant can offer) will be most assured._

 _If you do not care of the words of such a person...then continue on...and live in fear for every passing day afterward that the Life-Eater does not find you…_

 _-A humble author._

"Right...so this guy was crazy...somewhat."

Yang turned the page, and started reading.

* * *

" _Calm your mind...calm your breathing…"_

For some people, meditating in a locker room was somewhat strange. The locker room is meant to change into different clothes for specific events, usually exercise. It was rarely seen as a place for people to try to achieve inner peace.

For Blake Belladonna though, anywhere wide enough was good enough for meditation. She had been raised in the slums of one of the kingdoms, and had to learn to sleep anywhere. She was a former member of the White Fang, and taught to be a huntress at Beacon, forcing her to learn when danger could be just around the corner.

And for the last few years, she had taught herself to meditate in rather uncomfortable places. All of said meditation taught to her by Lie Ren, who was happy to help with it.

" _Calm your body...calm your spirit."_

She breathed one more time, before opening her eyes-a vibrant amber color-and standing up. She walked over to her locker and pulled out her two weapons: Gambol Shroud and the newly modified pair Wilt and Blush. She sheathed them and walked over to the mirror to look at herself.

Her outfit consisted of a dull grey Kimono with dark violet linings. At left side of the kimono was either ripped off or not worn on the other side, revealing the small amount of black chest armor underneath. Her left arm was covered in bandages, while the right hand was covered with a black, fingerless glove. From her lower half was a black hakama, with some violet starting to appear near the feet. The right leg was ripped, exposing half of the shin where a black ribbon was wrapped tightly. Her feet had Zori sandals covering white Tabi socks, distinguishable from the purple cloth thong between the toes. To compliment her outfit was a black haori with the varied symbols of her teammates going down the right side: her symbol, a yellow flaming heart, a pale blue snowflake, and a...dark red rose.

Digressing from the thoughts that would plague her mind, she looked at her personal appearance. Her hair was much longer, to the point that half of it was loose and half were in a ponytail. The front was waved upward save for a few bangs, exposing her forehead. She moved some hair to the side to look at her ear, revealing three earrings in the same shape and color as the other three symbols: the heart, the rose, and the snowflake…

" _All of my teammates…"_ She sighed...remembering the times she had with them. " _If only it could ever be the same again…"_

As she stared in the mirror, thinking about the past, the intercom broke the silence. " **Will the final two contestants please come to the ring. I repeat, will the final two contestants please come to the ring."**

" _looks like its my time…"_ Blake stretched her arms and made her way out of the locker room to the ring.

* * *

The arena (or stadium, if you prefer) that holds the annual Mistral Regional Tournament was massive...to say the least.

The number of seats that could be occupied was a whopping 90,000, with a record attendance of 89,874 people that came for the very same event more than a few years ago-when Pyrrha Nikos won the tournament for the second time in her four year streak.

It was this very same event that called many people to attend, and although it didn't break its previous record, it came close with 87,256 people attending.

Of course, this was much larger than during the third and fourth victories for Pyrrha, when interest in seeing her win started to wane.

This would've been when Pyrrha would decide to attend Beacon, where she wouldn't attend the tournament for a few years. However, after the…"incident" five years back, Pyrrha would return to the tournament once again.

Many people would've expected her to win the tournament for her fifth time...only to get a real surprise in the final round.

Now, for the last four years people would come to see what many considered one of the biggest "rivalries in the history of Remnant." Which wasn't entirely true...since the two were friends, and there had been bigger rivalries in the past.

Still...the last four years didn't dissuade many from declaring it as such…

The two contestants in question were finally arriving, entering the ring opposite to each other. One was Blake Belladonna-winner of the tournament two times-carrying her signature Gambol Shroud and the dual weapons Wilt and Blush.

The other was Pyrrha Nikos, now a six time champion of the tournament. She-like Blake-had changed in appearance over the last few years, the most notable was her hair. Now tied up in a bun with a pigtail trailing down her back. The only thing that was the same from her years at Beacon were the bangs in front just above her jade colored eyes.

Her outfit had also changed significantly. Where originally it was a sort of bronze/leather top with an elastic, red, A-line miniskirt and a red ankle-length drapery wrapped around it, there was now a large amount of armor over several of these parts. On her shoulders were small pauldrons made of steel, covering armor that connected with the gorget around her neck. Around her waist was a moderately sized ringlet that was also connected to another part of armor-her skirt, now with steel covering all but the front of the material. Out of the right side, a familiar red drapery was attached to it, this time reaching only as far as her knees and with her symbol-a spear and shield-emblazoned on it. In addition to these were a gauntlet on the right arm and a metal, gloveless armband on the other attached to a black sleeve reaching far into the pauldron.

Her circlet, though relatively unchanged in the front (save for it being round in the center instead of pointed), now surrounded the hair bun in the back. Hanging from the circlet were two emeralds in the shape of teardrops. On the left arm under the pauldron was another smaller, red drapery-this one having the symbols of the rest of her team during her time at Beacon.

Many would be surprised at the large change. But there was a reason...considering she was now married-her wedding ring wrapped around her left ring finger.

The two contestants approached each other. Pyrrha, like she did every time for the last four years, smiled at her opponent. Blake held a signature stoic expression, until she herself smiled softly towards her opposite.

"Pyrrha…"

"Blake…"

The two greeted each other just as the announcer started to speak. " **Ladies and gentlemen, it is my pleasure to introduce you to the final bout of the Mistral Regional Tournament! Facing each other for the fourth time in a row are two familiar faces. From Mistral, participating in the tournament for her eighth time, give a hand for Pyrrha Nikos!"** The crowd roared in a standing ovation, Pyrrha turned and waved at them, a large grin on her face.

" **And from outside the kingdoms of Remnant, returning for the fourth time, the second half of the biggest rivalry in Remnant's recent history. Raise your voice for Blake Belladonna!"** Once again, the crowd cheered in a standing ovation. Blake simply raised her hand and nodded, before turning to Pyrrha and a newcomer to the ring.

The person was the proctor of the match. A large, balding man in black clothes and a weary expression. He looked at the two of them before speaking. "Alright you know the rules, make this a fair match. You get DQ'd if you cheat or have a ring out, and you win the match with either a KO or Aura depletion...do you understand?"

The two nodded. "Good, then on my signal…"

Pyrrha unsheathed Milo and Akouo, taking up a combat stance. Blake took a tachi-ai posture with Wilt and Blush, her hand resting on the hilt.

The proctor backed up. "...Ready…"

Blake smiled. " _This is going to be fun…"_

The area was silent...then the proctor yelled "Begin!" and the two charged each other. To the two of them, it was a simple sprint and clash of blades...to everyone else, it was like they flashed from one spot to the other, too fast for the normal eye to see…

* * *

"Well, here we go again for the fourth time…"

Junior leaned against the bar as he watched the match go on from the hologram, a wet glass he started to dry off in his hands. Sitting behind him were Melanie and Miltiades Malachite, who-with due respect-were not interested in the fight whatsoever.

In fact, the Malachite twins were bored out of their minds.

Typically, the two of them would be on the floor, engaging in their nightly partying, dancing, and drinking. Unfortunately, there were times when Junior had problems that sometimes even he couldn't deal with alone or with his henchmen. Hence, they would have to stay at the bar or as close to it as much as possible, which is why they were sitting at the bar tonight instead of their usual fun.

What made it worse? The problem in question was none other than Yang Xiao Long-sitting just a few stools away from them and reading an old book-who ended up beating the two of them and sent Junior flying through a window.

Speaking of Junior. "You gonna order something, blondie…"

Yang looked up at Junior, who stood behind the bar with his head resting on his hand. "...And what's with the fucking book, it's not like this place is a library."

Yang sighed as a soft grin spread across her face. "A: I don't have enough money to order anything from you, and B: Libraries are boring…"

Junior snorted "I can understand that, but _my_ bar of all places…"

"Well...it's the only place that I could think of...and I just can't head back to...head back to Beacon."

The two went silent as Yang started to stare nowhere in particular.

Usually Yang and Junior would bicker and argue over certain things that typically involved Yang not ordering something, using the bar for something else and holding up business as a result, occasionally ordering something and not paying for it…

But there would be occasions where she would mention...things related to her past. Her sister, Beacon Academy, Team RWBY, someone named Blake Belladonna-she would mention these sort of things, then just...stop...like she didn't want to continue.

Junior didn't have any siblings, but he could tell that if he did, he'd beat the living shit out of anyone who wanted to harm them. With the loss of her sister (who he met while laying on the ground from being punched out a window), he guessed that Yang just...couldn't anymore-beaten down and broken to where she just gave up on the idea of fighting people.

She still knocked out some poor sods teeth for messing with her hair, but that was _completely_ different.

She gave up, shattered, and effectively tried to piece herself back together as best as she could, and she did it by trying to repress memories of her sister...which she did now, when she finally returned back to her chipper self.

"Yeah...I don't really have anywhere else to go, so…" She rubbed the back of her head and started laughing meekly. Junior stared at her with a furrowed eyebrow, then sighed as his head fell down.

"Fine...what the hell is the book about anyway?"

Yang sported a cheeky grin as she started reading the book again. "Nothing you'll care about, so why should I tell you?"

"Because if you don't I'll start complaining about you not ordering anything again…"

Yang rolled her eyes. "Alright then...it's called " _The Tale of the Hero and the Life-Eater."_

Junior blinked as confusion spread across his face. Yang simply continued reading, satisfied with Junior being stumped into silence...somewhat.

"So why are you reading it?"

"Oh, not much. Just got it because I heard there would be a grand adventure if I-"

She stopped mid sentence before bringing the book closer to her face. Junior noticed her eyes were bouncing back and forth rapidly, indicating that she had to re-read whatever she had just read.

After a minute, Yang put the book onto the bar, staring at it intently. Her hands were on the bar, and Junior could see that she was gripping it tightly-to the point where it was starting to be crushed by her strength.

"Blondie?" She didn't respond, still in shock.

"Hey, blondie…"

He snapped his fingers near her face, but she still didn't respond. It was like the book had hypnotized her to the point that she shut out everything around her.

"Oi, BLONDIE!"

This time he slammed his fist down on the bar in front of her, causing her to flinch back to reality. She blinked at Junior, then glanced at the twins before turning back to him.

Then she did the strangest thing...she started laughing.

"Yep, you're going crazy…"

She tried to regain control of herself, her laughter impeding her speaking. Junior could only make out the words as she continued laughing.

"So-Sorry, I C-Couldn't help myself. I-I just found something...something in the book w-was all-pffthahaha!"

She laughed, and laughed, and laughed-laughing for a full five minutes. When she finally started calming down, she took a deep breath and grinned at him.

"Sorry, I'm gonna leave now, I found what I needed to find. I'll see you next time…"

She got up and made her way for the door. Junior had half a mind to stop her and make her pay for the twenty one times she "forgot" to pay for her drinks. But considering that was the most bizarre thing she saw from the girl, decided against it.

As the blonde girl left, the twins watched her with narrowed eyes. When she was out of hearing range, Melanie turned to her sister. "Hey Miltiades, you think we should go and beat her up for simply presenting herself in our favorite place."

"And risk having to deal with her beating _us_ again, I'll take my chances on the dance floor…"

"Whatever…" the twins turned to Junior, who was still looking in her direction. "Can we go back to having fun, Junior?"

Junior stayed silent for a minute, before turning back to the bar. "Yeah, yeah-go piss around wherever you usually do."

The Malachite twins nodded, before walking away from the counter. Junior grabbed a glass, put a simple beer in, and drank it in one sitting-all the while muttering about blondes not paying and other small annoyances throughout the day…

As Yang exited the club, the large grin that was plastered on his face now turned slowly into a frown. By the time she was outside, it was now a complete scowl.

She looked up at the broken moon in the sky above. Usually it was a typical pallid white. Tonight it was turning to a blood red.

As she looked at the lunar object, she started remembering what the book said, the implications behind it, and where it ultimately led: Beacon Academy.

" _Life-Eater, huh?"_

* * *

The moon was high in the night sky, shinning in a bizarre spectacle of sanguine.

It was rather fitting among the old ruins of Beacon, slowly falling apart and decaying with each passing day. Even if it didn't glow red, the blood red moon added a good hint of eeriness to it all.

It was here-in the once beautiful courtyard of Beacon Academy-that a disturbing scene was unfolding.

Usually, when Grimm are killed they dissipate, becoming nothing where they were once something.

They never bled, they never decayed-they always simply faded away...this was not the case here.

The bodies of Grimm were strewn across the ground, their limbs spread out and separated from their torsos, and their carcasses filled with bullet holes. Around twenty of them-from Beowolves to Ursa to Boarbatusk-laid on the ground dead and in pieces. Surrounding them were large puddles of blood, which poured from their wounds relentlessly till their bodies finally ran out of the red liquid.

At the center of this gory massacre kneeled a young woman, scarred, beaten, and breathing heavily.

Her outfit was a black blouse, skirt, and boots with red trimmings and black leggings, torn and frayed in multiple areas. Around her waist was a large grey belt holding a pouch and large cartridges, a silver, blood-stained rose symbol adorning it. Around her neck-attached by cross shaped pins-was a red cloak, tattered around the edges of the cape and hood.

Though hidden under her hood, many would see someone of a pale complexion, with reddish-black hair that was lopsided. Most notable of all were her eyes...a striking silver in color...

...Eyes that narrowed in pain. She was cut and scarred over her entire body, blood seeping through the wounds and congesting with that of the "monsters" around her.

She looked around at the carnage before her, almost wanting to puke. Her breaths were ragged as her body convulsed in agony.

It kept happening, getting worse, and worse, and worse, and worse...and continued growing worse, even as she noticed something bizarre.

The blood she was kneeling in started...gathering around her, getting closer and closer until there was almost none of the red liquid on the ground. Then it started rising up to her wounds slowly, going up her arms and through her clothes. When they reached the torn flesh, it started entering her insides through the cut at a disturbingly quick rate. When it all disappeared, her wounds started to heal-not just start scabbing the wound over, but knitting the flesh back together-quickly enough that as she started to stand up, she was completely fine. The only sign that she had been in a fight being the bodies of the monsters and her torn clothes, which were otherwise fine.

She stood staring at the bodies of dead creatures, gripping her head in the process. They seemed so familiar, yet she could barely remember what they were and what she called them. She didn't even know if they were of the same species...all she knew was that if they attacked her, she should kill it by any means possible.

Both her hands moved to her head now as her grip got tighter. Her breathing got heavier and sweat started falling down her head more and more…

...When she thought about it, she couldn't remember anything. She couldn't remember her past, she couldn't remember how she knew how to use the scythe in her hands, she couldn't remember how she got where she was or where it even was at. She couldn't even remember what her name was…

…

...Wait, she did remember her name. It was faint...but distinctive nonetheless…

" _...My name...my name is Ruby Rose…"_

* * *

 _...Ruby Rose was dead...or so it was thought._

 _Now four years later, after the disaster that destroyed Beacon Academy. Ruby Rose is alive-fighting for her life, suffering amnesia, and with disturbing new quirks that she has no idea about…_

 _...One thing is certain...Ruby Rose is back...for better or worse…_

 _...A curtain rises, and a new journey reveals itself. One bathed in the blood of monsters, humans, and "others." It could lead to disaster, redemption, happiness...or much worse...however…_

 _A rose has finally bloomed...and must Never Wilt...for hell will descend, and the Remnants of previous worlds will be annihilated._

" _Scatter, young Rose...scatter and_ _ **Never Wilt.**_ "

* * *

 **Never Wilt: The Life-Eater:**

 **Prologue.**

* * *

 **Ladies and gentlemen, My name is CrazeStasis, and welcome to the tale of the Life-Eater...NOPE, can't do it, can't stay serious for five minutes!**

 **So yes, I'm again starting** _ **another**_ **fan fic. I know, I'm terrible, but I can't help myself, you get new ideas and you want to write them down and share them even if you already have other ideas...I CAN'T HELP MYSELF!**

 **So essentially what happened was that I explored the internet through most of a day (who doesn't these days) when I ended up watching a few videos, visiting the TVTropes page, and reading a RWBY fic that did a crossover with Bloodborne...and some ideas maybe seeped into my head at the time.**

 **Let me say this about me, I love two exact kind of things: adventure, and mind-fuckery. I've gotten The Call of Cthulhu from a nearby bookstore and read a few stories, I watched Neon Genesis Evangelion (I never really watch any "mecha" anime) halfly because it screwed with your mind, and something tells me I would really like Metal Gear Solid 2 (and hate it at the same time...I'm weird like that) for the exact same reason. So yes, I do intend to write a story that includes several instances of adventure and utter mind-fuckery...I hope I do good.**

 **Yes, the fic also has inspiration from Bloodborne, but this story is NOT a crossover this time. No characters from other series are going to appear, this is primarily gonna take place in the RWBY-verse, and that's about as much as I'll tell you about for right now.**

 **With that all out of the way...PLEASE REVIEW! did I do a good job, a terrible job. Did I fuck up on some grammar, tell me what parts are weak, which ones are strong, I NEED TO KNOW THESE THINGS!**

 **Other than reviews, you can favorite or follow the story if you want to. Either one of those (or both) are very much appreciated (seriously, when I see either on my story page, I start to jump up and down with pure joy).**

 **Now, on the state of my other fanfics (Amaranth and Strange Xenoverse), I'm still not dead with Amaranth and do plan to continue that series, I just need to get started on research is all (I've both been busy generating new ideas and with some housework). Strange Xenoverse, on the other hand is...well, I don't know. I may end up abandoning it, I had a good idea, but I don't know if I can follow it up properly...so yeah, currently up in the air folks.**

 **Now, for a classic CrazeStasis move here...SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION: Visit my** **Youtube Channel CrazeStasis** **for video game let's play videos, I'd really appreciate it!**

 **And with that, I bid you all ado, See you next chapter!**

 **Next Chapter: Reunion's.**

 **For Fun, Fedora's, and Insanity...PEACE!**


	2. Chapter 1: The Journey Home

**I do not own RWBY or other known Rooster Teeth productions. All such products belong to Rooster Teeth and only Rooster Teeth.**

* * *

" _Almost there...almost there…"_

 _She had been walking forever. Walking through the dark forest-intent on reaching her destination._

 _She had walked-regardless of exhaustion, regardless of the bruises all over her body, regardless of the cuts that appeared on her arms, legs, and face…_

 _She walked on regardless...determined to reach that place...in search of the truth…_

" _Almost there...just a little further…"_

 _She glanced back at the small wagon she was pulling with her. A small figure lay sleeping inside, wrapped in a bright red cloak-the only memento of their lost mother…_

 _...At least her sister's mother. Her own apparent mother however was severely lacking from the bigger picture…_

" _We're almost there sis...We're almost there…"_

 _Her body had long since given up on trying to stop her. She had gone so far that her legs were screaming at her to stop and rest...or worse, turn around and go back home._

 _But she endured and continued, and eventually the sore pain of walking was replaced with incredible exhaustion, which she powered through as well._

 _She would reach her goal...even if hell were to rise and stand in her way, she would reach her goal._

" _Almost there...just around the bend…"_

" _..."_

" _...There! There it is...right there…"_

 _The building ahead was long abandoned. A crumbling, decrepit shack with broken and boarded windows of which were withering away and rotting from the rain and nearby moisture. The roof was falling apart, with various shingles missing or nearly falling off. The chimney that the house possibly had long ago was now fractured, having fallen through the roof and causing it to collapse in said location. The front door that had once been on its hinges was now shattered, laying in front of the doorway...possible proof that the Grimm had since ransacked the place, destroying it in their spiteful hatred of all humanity._

 _It was the exact place she was looking for…_

" _There...mother is there...mother is inside...mother is inside!"_

 _She took a step forward, then another step, then another, then another, then anoth-_

 _She stopped…_

 _She felt it, this heavy, scornful presence-full of malice and rage. Her hairs stood up as she stared at the darkness beyond the doorway, from which an inferno of sorrow and animosity emanated...from which only one thing could bring about in all their strength and power…_

 _She started breathing heavily, taking a step back as the growls and snarls reached her ears. They emerged one by one-two eyes...four...six...only six-three pairs of sanguine eyes. Eyes which brought with them the promises of hell, destruction, and the promises of death...whether it be quick or slow…_

 _She tripped backwards, falling onto the ground. She stared at the doorway as tears welled up in her eyes, not because of her impending death, but because of the realization that she had screwed up-bringing herself not just to her death, but her own sister as well...who wouldn't even be awake to realize it, and never will…_

" _No...this isn't how it was supposed to go...this isn't what I wanted...sis...gotta protect my little sister...gotta protect Ruby!"_

 _Registering the thoughts in her mind, she stared at the doorway once more. The beasts inside narrowed their eyes-waiting for her to make the first move...the first mistake._

 _She bolted up to her feet and ran to the wagon. The beasts emerged from the shadows, black as the night and intent on nothing more than the kill...the feasting._

 _She reached the wagon as the beasts charged at inhuman speeds, in erratic patterns that a human would be incapable of. She climbed in and covered herself over her sister...just as the beasts lunged, their dark forms descending, and their maws agape-ready to feed on them._

 _And in that fleeting moment, between then and their demise, a thought ran through her head. One that pierced her like an arrow, had it pierced wood from afar…_

" _Mother!"_

Yang Xiao Long awoke startled. The dream of long ago bringing her back from slumberland.

She blinked for a moment, giving herself a chance to wake up, before sitting up and taking a glance around the hotel room she was residing in. It wasn't much to look at-a single bed and bathroom with a hologram, small table, and balcony. The wallpaper was falling off in some places, and the carpet was somewhat frazzled and stained. But it was reliable for a week's stay, and a week was all she needed…

She continued looking around the room, until her eyes settled on the book she had spent the entire seven to eight days she had been there reading…

"So I spent the night with you again, huh?" She said to herself. She read through the last few chapters of the book during the evening before. By the time she was done, it had been three in the morning...hence why she was now waking up at forty two minutes after noon.

She sighed, remembering when she would go out at similarly lengthy times and party until she couldn't party no more, instead of cooping herself up in a room to read a book.

" _Well...at least reading isn't liable to end up with several guys beaten into the ground…"_

She crawled over to the book and picked it up, glancing at the cover once more. She opened it up and looked at the title…

" _The Tale of the Hero and the Life-Eater."_

She stared at the title for a long time. Several things had come across her mind as she read through the book, thinking of the meaning of its contents...their implications...their truths and lies...their possibilities…

...their disturbing contexts…

" _...Back from the gates of death itself…"_

She remembered when she reached that particular line. At first she laughed it off as just some sort of joke, the character in question having simply survived a close scrape with death. Then she read further and further, the character seemingly defying death in multiple, impossible ways-until she reached the end and read through how the "Life-Eater" was finally "killed"...only to see that it wasn't dead in the end after all and went into hiding-biding its time to return and do whatever it wanted, good or evil.

She closed the book and put it back down on the end table, before pulling out her scroll. After she finished the book, she had called Jaune (who, from the somewhat disappointed voice in the background that Yang could only single out as Pyrrha's, was clearly having a very intimate moment with her) and asked him where Weiss and Blake would be.

The contents of the book were fairly disturbing, but they also gave out one big hint that bothered her. One that she would need both of her old friends for, since that area would now be swarming with Grimm...and who knows, maybe that "Life-Eater" as well, that would be pleasant.

"Right...first, where's Ice Queen…"

* * *

 **Never Wilt: The Life-Eater.**

 **Chapter 1: The Journey Home.**

* * *

"Miss Duratus, a cup of tea please."

"As you wish, Miss Schnee."

Weiss Schnee looked at the company reports-stocks, deals, employee resumes-as her secretary poured her some tea, which she did with stoic grace.

She was somewhat glad of that stoicness. She would often burst out in anger and become easily irritable, while Miss Duratus retained her calm demeanor, even in the most nerve wracking of events. An excellent way to rein her in and bring her back down to earth when she was very close to losing her marbles.

" _If only I had her kind of attitude…"_

She finished preparing the tea and brought it over on a decorated platter. Weiss took the platter, then the cup and brought it to her lips.

The tea was good as always-warm, having a rich texture that could be done by only the best of hands, hell, even lack of additives didn't hamper how excellent it was. She put the platter down on her desk and nodded in thanks to Miss Duratus, who took her spot in front of her desk once again.

"So...have you taken care of all the files I requested you work on…"

"Yes. I had a look at all the files, all of our shares are accurate as always, every employee is accounted for, and all of them are faxed and organized as of two hours ago…"

"Good, thank you Miss Duratus. You may return to your station…" Weiss slumped back into her seat, taking a sigh of relief as she closed her eyes. However, her secretary's

"Is something wrong?"

"Well, Miss Schnee...around two o'clock PM, yesterday, I came across a receipt for one of the local nightclubs that you frequent. I looked into it and found that you took some…"company"...home with you around four days ago…while inebriated..."

Weiss groaned. This was the one thing she both liked and hated about Miss Duratus: _nothing_ got past her...even her own bosses activities. This was great for whenever a small mistake in the paperwork came around that needed fixing, but not so great for when she wanted a private night at a bar...with another person from time to time…

She looked to the outside world beyond the window as her secretary continued. "While I do find it imperative to at least gain _some_ free time here and there, I would refrain from using that free time to visit a bar, have a drink, and find someone to spend the night with every time you _do_ have it…it can be bad for your public image."

"I know, I know...I should really lay off the vodka next time…"

"Maybe _all_ alcohol instead…"

"Yeah, yeah...just gotta remember that when I go out next time…" Weiss sighed as she sat upright in her chair. "Anything else I should know of before you return to your post."

"Yes...someone called earlier to schedule an appointment with you…"

She blinked. "They tell you who they are?"

"Nope, they simply said that you would know exactly who they were before hanging up."

She blinked again...someone she knew?

"...Right...allow them in when they arrive, I'll talk to them when they come around…" Miss Duratus nodded before turning around to head back to her office. "What time will their appointment be?"

"Four o'Clock…"

Four o'Clock...four hours from now...funny.

Weiss slumped back into her chair, reaching for the cup of tea from earlier. She took a sip from it...it was excellent as always.

...Too bad then that it didn't pepper up her spirits, because it really was excellent tea…

* * *

 _...Almost four o'clock...who's gonna walk through the door...who's gonna walk through the door…_

She had done everything she did on her routine. She checked her computer for any new emails, she filed away any new papers that had arrived on her desk, she even took time to read a newspaper. Now all that was left was to wait for the scheduled appointee to walk through the door and discuss with her whatever it was they wanted.

It was at this point that Weiss mentally repeated her mantra of " _Who's gonna walk through the door."_ It was a habit she developed near the beginning of her career as CEO, and she always repeated it when certain appointments were imminent...like this one at four o'clock, for instance.

She repeated the mantra for a minute...then another, and another, another, another, another…

...another…

...and another minute passed…

 _...Seriously…_

...One more minute gone by…

…

 _...I swear if they don't show up within another minute, then I'm gonna-_

She heard the click of the door. Silencing her mind, she looked over to the door as it opened...and had to keep her mouth from actually dropping to the desk...

She was still taller than most other women. Bright lilac eyes helped to enhance the grin stretching from one end of her face to the other. To Weiss though, the most shocking thing about her-other than who she was-was the fact that her long blonde hair, that no one ever messed with unless they had a death wish, was tied in a ponytail trailing down her back.

Her outfit was also drastically different from what she remembered. Originally, her clothes were meant to show off skin and sex appeal while still being flexible and combat ready. However, her current outfit was rather conservative-the only skin being from the thighs and knees of her legs and part of her midriff. She had on a light brown leather flight jacket over a yellow shirt that was ripped at the abdomen. On her left elbow was a black elbow pad with her burning heart symbol on it, and her hands were covered in black fingerless gloves with yellow trimmings. Her lower half consisted of black short-shorts held on by a belt holding several pieces of equipment and black combat boots with gold trimmings. Weiss could see the glint of her weapons-Ember Celica(?)- under her sleeves, along with an earring and necklace around her neck…

Weiss stared for a few minutes, practically unable to say a full sentence. Until finally her mouth managed to spit out the appointee's name…

"...Yang!?"

Her grin grew wider as she gave a small wave. "Hiya!"

* * *

Weiss's face was still staring at her in shock, even as Yang brought her teacup close to her mouth.

 _Well...it has been four years…_

She took a sip of her tea and- _holy shit this stuff is good!_

"Damn Weiss, did your secretary take a degree in just making tea or is she really that good!?"

She looked over at Weiss...still staring at her like she had just seen a ghost. gee-if she knew her reaction would be this bad, she might as well been better off just calling first if she had her number...

"Uh...Weiss?"

She still didn't respond.

"Weiss…"

She stood, reached over the desk and waved a hand in front of her. Weiss immediately responded by grabbing her hand so quickly that Yang jumped slightly. "Weiss!?"

The white haired woman held on tightly to her hand and looked it over carefully-turning it over, touching it with her other hand, even smelling it (and reacting in disgust afterwards). Then after seemingly dissecting her hand with sight alone, finally released her hand and spoke for the first time since she got here.

"I can feel the touch of your hand...can see you clearly in front of me...it's really you, isn't it Yang…"

Yang sighed as she sat herself back into her seat. "So the Ice Queen finally realizes her old teammate is in front of her, YES, congratulations! Geez...It's like you thought I went and died or something…"

"...It's been _four_ years, Yang."

"...So? You've been cooped up in your lil' castle here-I was expecting to find you sleeping on a slab of ice or stone for all I knew…"

It was technically true what she was saying. Ever since inheriting the Schnee Dust Company from her father, the number of appearances by Snow Queen had dropped way below general expectations. In fact, while Weiss had taken full control of the company a year afterward, people still thought her papa was still in charge.

Hell, even Yang herself thought that her dad was still in charge...until Jaune told her otherwise.

Weiss didn't seem to register her words for a moment, until she shook her head and spoke. "...I get out...I'm just really busy is all." She started to scratch the back of her neck. Yang gave a cheeky smile...she knew just what she was talking about…

"Oh yes! Of course you're busy-what with the visiting several big nightclubs and getting hammered and hitting it up with several of the ladies…" Yang closed her eyes and slumped further into the chair, her hands resting behind her head. "...Yes, Of course that kind of busine-"

A small thud heard right next to her ear stopped Yang. She opened her eyes to look to her right...and nearly jump out of her seat in fright. A large, narrow shard of ice was embedded deep into the right side of her seat-just a few inches right next to her head. Yang looked over at Weiss and saw that her face was almost red with anger, a contorted smile barely contrasting with her clearly furious glare and the seemingly visible killing intent surrounding her. Her hand was held out onto the desk, a single finger raised upward.

" **...I'm sorry, could you say that again you overgrown tinder head...I dare you…** "

That was _almost_ the Weiss she knew...just without the terrifying aura around her...as far as she could remember. "A-uh-um...a...we-wa...ohh…"

As Yang tried to produce words, the door behind her opened as Weiss's secretary popped her head through. "Miss Schnee."

"Yes, Miss Duratus?" Weiss's expression changed from terrifying and barely contained anger to surprisingly chipper in a flash. Yang was still pale from terror nevertheless, as she sat like a log. "Mr. Vert called, the conference will be ready within the hour."

"Ah, yes! Thank you Miss Duratus, now if you just close the door behind you on the way out, thank you!" The secretary rolled her eyes before disappearing from behind the door and shutting it closed. Yang didn't move as Weiss continued to smile and wave until the door closed, letting out a frustrated sigh and sitting back into her chair.

"It's 4:41…" Her arm extended outward, and her finger pointed upwards when Weiss pulled it back. The ice shard removed itself from the chair as it floated above Weiss's hand, which clamped shut into a fist-causing it to shatter into pieces. "...We have an hour Yang. Why are you here?"

Yang didn't respond, still frozen with fear…Weiss would find it rather comical if she wasn't in a terrible mood so suddenly ( _Where did she even figure out about her triades at the clubs!?_ )...

"YANG!"

"DAH-Okay, Why I'm here, sorry..."

She took a minute to catch her breath, free from the fear of Weiss's wrath for the imminent moment. After a few minutes to calm herself (and the slight twitching of Weiss's eyebrow telling her to get on with whatever already), she took a deep breath and looked at the woman across from her-her expression completely serious.

"...I'm heading to Beacon by the end of the week."

"...Huh?"

"I'm gonna go past the wall and head to the Beacon ruins…"

For a minute, Weiss looked at her with moderate surprise, then shock as what she meant sunk in, then with an incredulous expression…

"You're going to head off beyond the wall and back to the ruins of Beacon Academy?" Yang nodded her head. Weiss sighed as she started to pinch the bridge of her nose... _now_ she was definitely gonna need a drink after this meeting was over.

"A-And you're telling me this _why?_ "

Yang swallowed as she craned her neck to the right. It seemed she already knew this question was coming, and wasn't eager to answer it right away (not at least until after buttering her up to it, she was sure). Weiss wasn't having any of that...her glare was telling enough.

"...Well...we're...we're old teammates and...uh...I thought that maybe, w-with Blake...we could...go there together...the three of us?"

 _...Of course…_

She had guessed the answer exactly when she said "Beacon," but kept her mouth shut at the time...she wanted to know if it was because of that or simply to tell a friend if she never..never came back.

 _...At least it's not the latter…_

Weiss reached down into a drawer for her desk, pulled out a bottle of wine and a single shot-glass, and set both on the top. For a minute, Yang was confused as Weiss poured some of the liquid into the glass and downed it in an instant, before she looked at her and started to speak.

"So, two things. First of all...are you insane?..."

Yang looked hurt as her head flinched away in offense. Weiss couldn't care less at the moment and continued with what she was thinking…

"...and second...Have you gone to Blake with that as well?"

"...No...I was gonna talk to her after I talked it over with you."

"Then third...Why, go back to Beacon in the first place...is this about…" For a second, her voice seemed to stutter. "...about Ruby?"

Both of them went silent. It had been five years after Ruby was officially declared MIA, and unofficially considered dead. As such, while Ruby was considered a hero for her actions during the Beacon Incident (along with the rest of the team), it was often considered taboo to speak of her when in front of the rest of team RWBY, since it brought about...sad memories…

Yang sat quietly for a solid minute, before taking a breath to answer. "...No...it's not about Ruby." Weiss looked at her-still silent-as she continued. "I actually read something...it was related to Beacon. Thought I'd figure out what it was about...planned to tell if you guys came along."

 _...So that's all there is to it, huh?_

Weiss slumped back into her chair. They sat silently, as Weiss thought about what Yang told her. Her arguably flimsy reasoning, the sheer stupidity of the idea, and all behind the fact that she's only seen Yang for the first time in years…

Her hand went to the bottle on the desk as she poured some more into the glass next to it. Sitting it down she brought it to her mouth and drank it before sitting it back down near the desk…

"...I'm not going, Yang..." She looked Yang directly in the eyes, to make Yang exactly sure that she was completely serious. "...If you're going back to get Beacon back, then just stop right there. We lost Beacon that day, and we'll never get it back...not today, or tomorrow, or the day's afterward…"

Yang listened to her words quietly, slowly nodding as Weiss made her point. Before she sat further into the chair, having to accept that her old friend wouldn't join her on the journey to Beacon.

The silence continued, until Yang reluctantly got out of her seat and looked at Weiss. "Okay...well...it was nice seeing you again."

Weiss said nothing, nor did she even try to look at Yang. She simply processed the words as she stared into empty space. Yang turned and started walking towards the door, however upon reaching it she turned and spoke a single sentence.

"...I thought that...maybe if I'm also going to Beacon, I might also check the place we last saw Ruby. Maybe...I dunno...see if I can figure out what happened to her out there...hell, maybe grasp onto hope that she's still alive out there, if that's at all possible…" She looked at Weiss-still staring at nothing. "...Just wanted to tell you that...bye."

Not saying another word, Yang opened the door, walked through, and closed it behind her. As she did, she glanced back to her as the door closed…

...She could barely make out the tears falling down her face before she disappeared behind the door.

* * *

Miss Duratus walked through the door five minutes later. Weiss sat slumped in her chair...the notable puffiness of her eyes giving a clear indication of what she had been doing in that small amount of time.

She was almost afraid to bother her while still in this state...but, it was her job to keep her moving along, even during times like this. She swallowed as she started to speak.

"The conference will begin within forty moments Miss Schnee. I would advise you get cleaned up for now and get ready for them…" She noticed the bottle of wine and shot glass sitting on the desk. "...I'll...confiscate these for now and put them somewhere they won't bother you for right now."

She took the two items on the desk and started for the door…

"Hey, Miss Duratus…"

Only to be stopped halfway. She turned and looked back at Weiss, who still sat slumped in her chair.

"...If someone gave you a chance to make something right once again...what would you do?"

For a minute she stood there, contemplating the question, before walking back towards the desk and sitting the bottle and glass back on the desk…

"While I don't know the context of what your problem is…" She poured a shot into the glass "...If I was given a chance to make right from wrong…" she brought the glass to her mouth and downed the drink in one, before sitting it down "...I would gladly take it."

Weiss looked at Miss Duratus, who simply nodded, turned, and walked out of the room…

Weiss sat there as her words started to sink in. Then, slowly she got out of her seat, walked around her desk, and picked up the bottle of wine. She inspected it-a brand called Remnant Historical-then gave a small smirk.

"What a waste of wine."

She held out the bottle and dropped it. Then walked away as the bottle shattered onto the floor, leaving its contents on the marble floor.

A thought ran through her head as determination started to well up within her...one she thought she had lost a long time ago.

 _ **...Make wrong right again.**_

* * *

 **Two Days Later.**

* * *

 _Stupid alarm…_

Blake Belladonna rolled to the other side of her bed. An end table-having a lamp, an alarm clock, and a photo of her old team-sitting on the very same side. She looked at the time marked on the clock and groaned...it was seven-fifty AM.

If she was back in Beacon, when she was still a huntress-in-training, she would wake up at anytime early in the morning-six, five-thirty, it didn't matter. But now...these days she just wasn't much of a morning person. She would simply like nothing more some days than to just lay in her bed until eleven…

 _...But the early bird catches the worm...as they say…_

Slowly, she sat up in her bed, taking in the dark grey sheets of her bed, the wardrobe, two bookcases filled with various pieces of literature, and two doors-one leading to the hallway, the other to a bathroom. She stretched her arms outward, before moving herself to the side of the bed. As she was about to get up, she looked over at the framed photo of her old team: RWBY, consisting of herself, Weiss, Yang...and Ruby.

She stared at the photo for a minute, before sighing and reluctantly get up and head to the bathroom…

 _...Yang...Ruby…_

She started with a nice, long shower, taking at least half an hour to wash herself from head to toe. Then she brushed her teeth, did her hair and makeup, got dressed, and headed down for some breakfast. It took her overall forty-five minutes to do such things and eat some waffles, before she cleaned her plate...it would be around nine by the time she reached the dojo.

After the Beacon Incident happened, she became a freelance huntress-taking various jobs for various groups government related or otherwise to take down Grimm for money. The pay was good, but moderate at first. Then after winning against Pyrrha at the Mistral Regional's, she became even more recognized, and those with more money in their pockets started offering higher rewards for her. Due to this, her bank accounts started to grow more and more...it was then that she decided to finally buy a house and settle down somewhat.

The house she moved into (and was still currently living in) was a massive traditional plot of land consisting of a main house, a work shed, a shrine, and a dojo...which was the one area she used the most for her more "active" activities-including simple exercise, yoga, sword practice, training in hand-to-hand combat, and many others…

It wasn't that bad of a place...there were people who thought it was haunted, but she didn't seem to have any problems with the house. If anything, the ghosts more than likely didn't even notice her living there (or were too afraid to even approach her, for all she knew), so it was peaceful nonetheless.

She opened the shoji door. The interior was surprisingly pristine...maybe that nice old lady a mile away came around again and cleaned (not that she minded).

She walked to the back wall where several bokken and shinai were held and, after some careful deliberation, picked out a bokken on the far right of the wall. Then she walked into the middle and started training-raising the wooden sword over her head, and bringing it down in a swift motion...at least a _hundred_ times.

There were days when she did more, but she wasn't really feeling it entirely today...a hundred was fine enough.

She did this again, and again…until some shuffling and rustling behind her caught her attention. She stopped and looked at the shoji door, but nothing moved…

 _Must be the wind…_

She returned to focusing on her training. Bringing the bokken down again…

 _...Again…_

 _...Again…_

 _...Again..._

 _...Again..._

 _...Again?_ She turned her head back towards the door. Again, nothing had moved-everything was still the same as it was a second ago.

She turned back, continuing with the bokken.

 _...Again..._

 _...Again..._

 _...Aga-_

"Hey there, kitten…"

The feeling of hands softly groping her butt startled Blake. In one swift motion she spun around, swinging the bokken in a wide arc, ready to hit the intruder…

...and stopped just near the neck when she realized who it was: Yang Xiao Long, who jumped away in panic.

Blake froze, staring at her old teammate, who had gone missing from her life for more than four years. Yang, meanwhile, had recovered from the sudden shock of nearly getting her neck broken by a wooden sword and had her hands on her knees breathing in and out.

"Damn, that scared the shit out of me-hehe...oh dear…"

"...Yang?"

The blonde haired woman stood up fully and gave a wide grin towards her. "Yep, it's me…"

A soft smile spread onto Blake's face. _It's her...it's actually her…_

Yang spread her arms out from her, the grin still on her face. "Cmon Blake, give me a big hu-UGHH!" And instantly had said grin slam into the dojo floor as Blake's bokken slammed down onto her head.

Yang laid there-pain throbbing through her cranium. Blake stood over her, a serious expression adorning her features. She stared at the blonde, before the soft smile from before appeared once again. "That's for a four year absence…"

Yang, still laying on the floor and barely fighting off unconsciousness, simply started chuckling meekly. "It's...great to...see...you too, Blake…"

* * *

For a minute Blake choked on the soda that Yang bought her. "-You're what!?"

Yang, whose typical jolly disposition was currently replaced with a very serious expression, repeated her sentence. "I'm going back to Beacon…"

Yang and Blake were currently sitting on the steps of the dojo. Initially they talked about their past adventures in the last four years, how they were doing throughout those years, and more recent events (the big one being her big match with Pyrrha earlier in the week) before Blake started to take a sip of her soda...and Yang dropped the bomb right there.

Blake stared at her with an open mouth. Yang wanted to go back to Beacon?

"Yang, there's nothing at Beacon anymore-"

"-Now I know you would say that, so before you continue just let me tell you _why_."

Blake wanted to argue...trying to go back to the ruins of Beacon could almost be considered a death sentence. Only Blake herself or her other teammate Weiss could survive for an extended length of time-she didn't even know how strong Yang could've gotten in the last four years. She stayed quiet, however, as Yang started on her story.

Yang started telling her of the book she picked up, the content's meaning, her intention to return and figure out if it was true, how she had already gone to Weiss about it, but was denied from her…

...Blake almost wanted to slam her head onto the floor. The story almost seemed too good to be true-the "Life-Eater" and all of that. But if it was in a book…

"Do you have the book?

Yang blinked before turning to a bag sitting on the floor near her. She reached inside and pulled out an old, worn book. Blake inspected the outside- _The Tale of the Life-Eater_ -then opened it up and started skimming through the pages...It was exactly as Yang had told her.

 _...Well...that's better than nothing, I guess._

She sighed as she handed the book back to Yang. "Alright, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now...so why did you visit and tell me about all this."

Yang scratched her neck for a minute, before taking a deep breath and speaking with succinct clarity. "...Because I was wondering if you wanted to go with me."

Blake's heart skipped a beat. "what?"

"I-I mean, we haven't been together as friends or a team for four years! We've all separated and gone our separate ways after...that day. And now, I'm...I've wanted to get back with you guys for years...so I thought…" Yang's face was starting to turn a light shade of pink, and her speech started to break in several parts. But her point had been made...Blake's face itself started to turn a light shade of red.

 _...G-Get back together…_

For once, something started to well up within her. Maybe it was a sort of hope-something that she wished she could have once again. She could be with her friends again, become a team once more...and would have to head back into the ruins of Beacon Academy first for that to be possible…

The feeling in her chest deflated instantly as she reached Beacon. Yang was looking at her as Blake started looking away towards nothing, save maybe the sky. For a minute Yang wondered what Blake was thinking, when Blake started to speak.

"I...I can't…I'm sorry. It isn't that I'm disapproving about it. It's just...I…" The words couldn't come to Blake's mouth. She did _want_ to go back to Beacon-it was something she had thought about ever since she left that forsaken place-but she could just never do it, like something was blocking her path to making it back. She didn't know what it was, but something just kept her from going back, something that plagued her for those long years and she just couldn't get rid of…

The two fell silent, and remained that way for a lengthy amount of time. Blake stared at the ground-her mind somewhat of a jumble-and sighed. _If only it wasn't Beacon._

"I'm sorry." She said it meekly. Her words could barely be audible even in the simple silence of that morning.

Yang looked over at her former teammate, as a soft smile appeared on her face. "It's alright…" she patted her on the back "I kinda expected this would happen, actually...going in alone."

Blake looked over at Yang, who stared into the blue sky above. "I mean...yeah, both of you probably think it's ridiculous, just going back to Beacon because of something in a _book_...I guess I'm just a sucker for something adventurous, even if it comes from books, of all things." She chuckled...Blake _was_ the one more liable to read books the most after all.

"Yang…" Blake watched her, as she turned towards her. Slowly Yang leaned closer until she was giving Blake a hug, Blake-shocked for a single second-reluctantly hugged her back.

"Thank you, Blake…"

The hug lasted for little over five more seconds before both parted. Yang sighed "Man, I miss when I could give others big hugs...Those were the good ol' days!" Blake smiled and nodded in agreement, before Yang's characteristic grin appeared on her face once again.

"Goodbye, Blake...I'll see you sometime later…"

Yang started to walk off when Blake stopped her. "Wait!"

"hmm..."

"I'm sorry about asking this, but...is this partly...about Ruby."

Yang was silent for a minute, before she turned and looked away. "If I told you, would you try and stop me…"

"...No...I couldn't even if I tried…"

Yang didn't look back, started to take a step, then spoke up just one more time before she continued to walk...

"You never know...these days may be different after all?"

...She walked away and exited through the front gate. Leaving Blake alone to herself for the second time since they first met each other…

* * *

 _Let's see...garbage...garbage...ohh, a job assignment, gonna have to look at that later…_

It had been hours since Yang had left. Blake was now in front of her mailbox, sifting through all of the envelopes currently packed into the small compartment.

 _...Fan mail...okay. More garbage...a bill for the house...a job assignment...from Weiss Schnee?_

She looked at the envelope in front of her. Usually, as an indication that the mail is a job assignment, people send out a black envelope with a white seal that had her insignia in black on it. It was much easier to differentiate for her what was normal mail and what were jobs with them, and thereby made getting jobs a whole lot more easier.

Typically by now, after separating them from the normal mail, she would head inside and read them all before picking on the one that was most profitable without being detrimental to her in one way or another. However, she simply stared at the envelope in her hand-at the name written on it in a very distinctive style of handwriting...

...She knew _exactly_ why she was asking her for a job...she had been in her house just hours ago.

Before she could think any further on the subject though, the distinct footsteps of the old lady a mile down the road made her turn her head towards her.

"Oh! Why hello, dearie...how are you today." The old lady walked closer, a serene expression on her face like every other day.

Blake smiled. "Pretty good...I got to see an old friend today for the first time in years.

"Oh, that's wonderful! How did it go?"

Blake's smile faltered slightly at the words. "Well, it wasn't perfect...but I'm happy nonetheless…"

 _Am I really?_

She pushed the thought into the back of her head as she continued. "Speaking of which...did you clean the dojo earlier today."

"You noticed, dearie…"

"I am rather perceptive..."

"Well, I hope I did a good job...it always get's really dusty in there after a long time."

"It's perfect, thank you."

The old lady smiled and bowed before she started to continue on. However, before she could get any farther Blake stopped her. "By the way, where are you heading today…"

"Oh to the store actually, my son...oh. Should I tell...why not...my son's getting married!"

Blake blinked at that last word. "Married?" The old lady nodded.

For a minute Blake froze in place as the word repeated itself in her mind. The old lady watched her, somewhat confused, before speaking out.

"I never asked actually...did you ever meet and fall in love with someone?"

 _Fall in love with someone…_

Her mind thought of the answer, bringing up several memories of people that Blake had come to love in her lifetime. Adam, Sun, Penny, team JNPR, team CFVY, Weiss...Ruby…

...and...Yang…

 _...Oh my god...that's why._

Her mind went to a memory from long ago-when it was raining hard, and she was at the lowest point in her life. She came to her...sat with her...comforted her. Then after that...their lips…

 _...That's why…_

"Yes...Yes I did…a long time ago..."

The old lady looked at her for a few moments, nodding as she processed the words, when Blake spoke once more.

"Umm...Do you think...if we separated from each other for a long time...then just recently met each other again...do you think...we could get back together…"

She heard nothing from the old lady. For a minute Blake thought she didn't hear her, or didn't have a happy answer to the question. It was about a minute in when the old lady finally responded.

"Dearie...In all of my years, if someone were to ask me that question when I was young, my answer would be the same as it is today: Of course it can...it always can."

Blake stood silent for a minute before turning towards her, tears in her eyes. "Thank you…"

The old lady smiled. "Anytime dearie…" She waved and turned back down the road. "Well, I've better be off...see you later!"

Blake waved back, watching her walk slowly down the road. Then she looked at the job in her hands and-wiping her tears away-took it in with her.

 _Guess it's back to Beacon._

She went into the main house, placed the mail onto the table in the dining room, and headed into her own room. She stopped in front of her wardrobe and changed into her battlegear. Then she headed back into the dining room and stopped in front of _them_ …

Wilt and Blush-previously owned by Adam Taurus before his demise in the Beacon Incident-and Gambol Shroud: her own weapons before she arrived at Beacon. She looked at them with an intensity seen only once a few years ago...when she had lost the first person she had ever loved…

She took them from their shelves and equipped them, Gambol Shroud on her back, and Wilt and Blush by her side. Then she started for the door, only stopping to take the job Weiss mailed her and a quick look in a mirror near the door. Then she exited the house...one she wouldn't come back to for the next two weeks…

* * *

The old lady walked down the road, slowly coming close to Blake's house. As she got closer, she realized the doors were closed, and something was left on the door.

The old lady came closer and got a closer look. It was a slip of paper with a key attached to it. On the paper was a small message...one that made the old lady smile.

" _Had to head off...see you later!_

 _-Blake Belladonna._

* * *

 **Four Days Later.**

* * *

The walls separating the destroyed sections of Vale from the rest of the world stood strong and high on that lovely afternoon. To many it would be seen as a feat of mankind's ability to build in such a rapid time and under such notable stress and danger…

...To others it would be seen as a monument to tragedy and failure. One that they never wish repeated now or ever again…

Yang wasn't particularly keen on being here...it brought back bad memories the last few times she's been there. But considering what she was going to do, it would hardly matter in the end.

"...Yang, are you even listening?"

She blinked...Jaune Arc stood just a few inches in front of her, his back to her, as they rode up the elevator.

Ever since the Beacon Incident, Jaune rose to become a prominent figure in Vale. When the council ordered the wall be constructed to protect the citizens of Vale, Jaune was the first to volunteer as a watchmen for it until it was fully up and running. Then after that he ended up running for a seat on the council, which he ended up winning by a very slim margin.

Needless to say, he had become highly respected among the people of Vale. He was, after all, the main reason why most of Vale didn't turn into a shithole after the incident.

"...Y-Yep, heard every word... _every word_ …" She started laughing somewhat weekly. Jaune looked at her exasperated, before pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"...I swear, sometimes…"

Before he could finish his sentence, the elevator came to a stop. They walked out onto the top of the wall-taking in the incredibly high view that came with it.

"There it is...the ruins of Vale...and in the distance…" he pointed towards a large complex several miles out of the city sitting on top of a cliff face. "...What's left of Beacon Academy."

 _Wow._

It was the only thing she could think of. For a long time she had never seen this part of the city or what had been her own home for a few years. The events that had happened recently kept her from even looking at it all. Now though, it could almost be one of the best views of the city she had ever seen…

...If the city didn't look like it had been razed and ransacked to kingdom come.

 _...Stay focused Yang...don't think about the past now...you've come too far to change your mind…_

"...You okay, Yang…"

She looked over at Jaune, a concerned look on his face. Yang smiled "I'm fine! Just readying myself up mentally is all!"

Jaune wasn't convinced, but sighed as he reluctantly accepted the answer. "...You're still going to do this even if I try and stop you, won't you."

"...Yep...pretty much."

Jaune stared at her, until he finally relented on the subject and looked out towards the destroyed part of the city. "...I'll have a bullhead ready for you if you ever need it...just call me on the scroll and it'll pick you up."

"...Thanks...I'll keep it in mind." She started to walk towards the edge of the wall, looking down at the destroyed buildings and forests below, when Jaune called out at her.

"Just be careful, alright."

"Damn straight!" Yang looked at him and saluted to him, then she backed away from the wall, before turning back to it in a run, and jumping right off to the other side below.

Jaune watched this scene unfold, then continued just in case she actually changed her mind and climbed back up in a panic. When she didn't he turned around and headed back to the elevator slowly…

 _...Idiot...going in alone like that…_

...He was nearly at the elevator, when a distinct rumbling craned his head up towards the sky. A Bullhead-white as snow with a blue snowflake on its side-flew above the wall, straight into the ruins of Vale.

Jaune stared as it continued its flight straight into the ruins with wide eyes...recognizing exactly who that Bullhead belonged to…

 _...What's Weiss flying into the ruins for?_

* * *

Far off in the ruins, a far distance away from the wall, two watched from afar. both pair of eyes settling on the girl that just jumped off the wall, before they looked to the sky as a bullhead-pallid and more sleek than others-flew overhead before landing several miles.

"They're here…" A young, yet gruff and hardened voice spoke first, his tone anything yet pleasant.

"Yes, I can see that _perfectly_." Another equally young, but more sarcastic and jovial voice spoke next, his words sounding less serious and more like " _I told you so…"_

"I say we kill them, rip their heads off and impale them on spikes…"

"In time, my friend, in time. For now...we wait…"

The two watched as the bullhead flew back over the wall, before disappearing into the shadows...

...Their master would be proud of the work they had accomplished so far...he didn't need any unnecessary interruptions...not from these humans…

...or that damned Life-Eater…

...And so they waited for the right time. The time when they could get rid of them all at once... **by any means necessary.**

" _Soon...humans...soon."_

* * *

 **First of all...I am** _ **incredibly**_ **sorry.**

 **I'm sorry for the lack of updates, the lack of any indication as to what's going on with why I haven't updated, why I've seemingly disappeared from the face of the planet…**

 **I am incredibly sorry for all of that. I've just been incredibly busy with certain things in my life, haven't had the energy to try and write at all, or had some mental problem stop me from writing. It's all been one big problem that I've had to deal with for several weeks/months that I've just couldn't write.**

 **I started this chapter a few months back and then ended up with something getting to me, and now I'm releasing this chapter a few months later. I'm sorry for all of that...and I hope to never have you guys (and girls) read my stories and enjoy it, then not have it update until it's** _ **months**_ **afterwards without any update on** _ **why**_ **it hasn't done so.**

 **I'm releasing this chapter now, and with the full intention to explain exactly why I haven't updated for a while on my profile page afterwards (give it between today and tomorrow...I'll have it up by then).**

 **Again, I am truly sorry...I hope this doesn't happen again for a long time (hopefully never)...**

 **Now that I've apologized for all of that. I'm gonna get back to the story.**

 **So originally, I planned to have Yang, Blake, and Weiss get back together for the first time in years at the end there. But thought that "Maybe it would be better if we keep them separate for right now and reunite them later," how that turns out later even** _ **I**_ **have no idea, but that's how it is for right now.**

 **Yes, there are OC's in here. However, they are more or less side characters or antagonists (I'm looking at you mysterious people at the end there) and won't be that major a part of the story.**

 **Many of you may also be asking "Where's Ruby?" After the previous chapter confirmed she was in fact alive (or is she?) only to not appear in this chapter. Let me say that the next chapter after this one focuses exclusively on Ruby...so there's no need to get all panicky.**

 **How was this chapter? I'm kinda thinking that I didn't do as good of a job as my last chapter, but it would be best to hear what others have to say first before making my judgement…**

 **Again, I'm sorry. This time I plan to update a story** _ **at least**_ **on a biweekly (two weeks) basis from now on, so that I can keep on them without a problem. If anything gets in the way though...I'll definitely be sure to let you guys know in the future.**

 **For now, all I ask of you is to review and keep reading if you enjoy the story, all of that is very much appreciated.**

 **No Shameless Self-Promotion this time...same things happened with my channel updating, so I might as well not put the link in if that's the case.**

 **Thank you for your time, and as always, see you next chapter.**

 **Next Chapter: Who am I?**

 **For Fun, Fedora's, and Insanity...Peace.**


	3. Chapter 2: Pain

**I do not own RWBY or other known Rooster Teeth productions. All such products belong to Rooster Teeth and only Rooster Teeth.**

 **A quick note. This chapter is notably more graphic in its descriptions (and more than likely depictions) of violence, gore and trauma. It probably won't affect you much, but just in case you can't handle that stuff...** _ **you have been warned!**_

* * *

 **Present…**

* * *

 _Shut up…_

 **Rip their heads off and stick them on spikes! Disembowel them-force feed their intestines to themselves!**

 _Shut up…_

 **Cut their arms and legs off and cauterize them-let them savor the pain! NO, force their "friends" to eat off their own limbs-It'll be BEAUTIFUL!**

 _Shut up…_

 **Rip their stomach's out! Cut open their arms! Carve a SMILE ON THEIR FACES!**

 _Shut up._

 **Dismember them! Behead them! Break their bones! MAKE THEM SCREAM IN PAIN!**

 _Shut up._

 **Cave their skulls in!**

 _Shut up._

 **Make them shit themselves in FEAR!**

 _Shut. up._

 **Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL!**

 _Shut up!_

 **KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL!**

 _ **Shut up!**_

 **KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL-**

 **SHUT UP!**

The words viciously escaped Ruby Rose's mouth as she bolted up. Her eyes towards the stars above, and the incessant chanting for murder slowly dissipating from her mind.

She breathed ragged breaths as her heart started to calm down and the rate of its beating slowed to a crawl. Her frayed senses steadily returned to a semblance of normal (as in, a mix of paranoia and slight exhaustion keeping her in a bizarre state of constant alert and slowly ending up drained mentally and physically kind of normal) and she began to take note of her current environment.

The first thing that she could point out was that it was nighttime, the fractured moon lazily moving through the star-filled night. As she looked around, she could see that she was in a large, oval room-its floors and walls covered various shades of black, grey, and green. Several massive windows were built into the side walls, capable of showing not just the massive complex the room was a notable part of, but a beautiful view of the "city" just below the cliffside.

At a certain time, it all would've been seen as impressive-almost perfect in its construction and architecture. However, those days had long since passed…

The walls were broken, battered, and crumbling-the floor equally so. She remembered the first time she ended up in that room, took a single step, and instantly fell through two floors onto a piece of rebar. She felt the sting from her rib cage for at least the entire day…

The windows didn't fare much better, with some shattered in several pieces, and others just downright gone from their frames-the remaining edges of glass simple indications of what happened to them. Hell, the entire place could be counted as "not faring well." The several pieces of various furnishings around the room were fractured, cut to pieces, burnt to a crisp, and even _rotting_ in certain areas. The bed she was currently sleeping in was missing a leg, making it lopsided and strange to sleep on without a stack of books to even hold it up properly…

In essence, and in the most succinct way she could put it...the place was fucked to high heaven…

She looked down at her own body. She was naked-not just in her undergarments, not without her weapon, but stark naked from head to toe…but who could blame her, the clothes she had worn around that time were torn to shreds so badly she was practically naked to begin with. She looked over to one side of the room, as sitting on a couple of pieces of debris were two almost identical outfits...with one exception.

She got out of the bed and walked over to the two pairs of clothes. She picked up one of them and unfolded it...and almost dropped the torn, pathetic excuse for clothing onto the ground right then and there. She stopped herself, however, and removed the one major segment that remained undamaged: the red cloak.

 _Why do I keep this...even when the rest is finished…_

Ah great, _another_ question to add to her ever growing list...better write it down before she forgets later…

Digressing back to the clothes, she tossed the torn pair back onto the rock and picked up the other, much more well kept pair. She started with the underwear, then the top and skirt, the corset, the stockings, the boots, the belt, and finally the red cloak she kept for reasons unknown to her...

...It wasn't perfect. The stocking was ripped in several places, and one sleeve was missing from the elbow up. But as she looked herself over, she could tell that she was much more decent than she previously was. heck, she was more surprised by the fact that she found the room that they were still in at the time. The first room in the building she had entered when she woke up.

 _My room...my room..._

Pushing her thoughts back into her mind, she grabbed onto the older pair of clothes and started ripping it into rags. Who knows, it may be useful for later, and she did need one for what she was going to do next...

...Turning around, she looked towards the opposite side of the room. Standing on the wall, fully extended and ready for combat, was Crescent Rose-its blade originally spotless and capable of shining in the light now stained with the blood of those black beasts.

 _How do I know it's named? Why do I have a deep connection with it in the first place?_

She walked over and inspected its design-the barrel of the gun, the parts capable of making it compatible, the stained, dirty blade-before grabbing it from the wall and sitting down with the blade in her lap, the metal shaft resting on her shoulder. Then, with one small piece of torn clothing in her hand, started cleaning the blade as best she could with the rag.

It was still dirty when she was done-she didn't have any water nearby after all-but at least a reflection could be seen in the blade now. That was a bonus...speaking of reflections…

She looked at her own reflection. A young girl, maybe fifteen or sixteen in age, with black, red tipped hair. Her silver eyes dotting over the visage while her mirror self did the same, looking at facial features such as her nose, cheekbones, forehead…

 _A face with a name...but no past…_

She saw a look of longing in her mirror self, knowing that her own face did the same as well. She sat Crescent Rose down right next to her as she looked upward-a hole in the roof showing the moon and stars above…

...Who was she? Her own name was Ruby Rose, her weapon was Crescent Rose, and she woke up who-knows-how long ago. But what was her past before that? Why did she remember blonde hair, or a scar over a blue eye, or a black bow...and why did they make her head hurt whenever she tried to think deeper about them? She had no idea what it all was, or what she could use as a starting point…

She had only her name, her weapon's name...but nothing else… _Who was she?_

 _My name...my name is Ruby Rose...and it all started when I woke up…"there…"_

* * *

 **Never-Wilt: The Life Eater.**

 **Chapter 2: Pain.**

* * *

 **Four Weeks Ago…**

* * *

" _What the hell!?"_

 _Those were the only words that she could speak as she looked at the grotesque mound of flesh and bone in front of her…_

 _...It had clothes. A tan jacket over a destroyed yellow crop top, black shorts with a white back skirt, and leather boots. Under these clothes was a humanoid figure with rotting, burned, or eaten muscle that bled over it all several times, turning the gold or yellow trimmings to a fine shade of red. Several pieces of bone were exposed or sticking out from under it all, stained in various shades of brown, black, or vermillion. Around the chest was a massive hole that exposed the caved in ribcage, missing lungs, and still-beating heart._

 _What scared her the most though wasn't the destroyed flesh, broken bones, or exposed organs...no, it was the expression she could barely make out on her face: One of pure agony. Her eyes were gouged out, leaving nothing but blackened holes where they originally were. Half of her nose was missing, exposing part of the cranium beneath. The lips and ears were cut into repeatedly, with one ear almost ripped off. And nearly all of it were mutilated and decaying...only a few strands of blonde hair left to confirm who she could be…_

 _...And she was breathing. Hard, grating breaths, but breathing nonetheless…_

 _She could do nothing but stare in terror at the figure in front of her, even as it started to motion itself towards her direction…_

 _The figure stuttered, raised its hand toward her, and said-with a pained, rough effort…_

" _...R...Ruub-by...PleAsee...K-k-kILl...MEe…"_

* * *

She woke up in a cold, palpable sweat. Her breathing-quick and raspy-taking time to die down into a more calming rhythm. She reluctantly sat herself up, resting her head in her palm as she took time to get her bearings.

 _What the hell did I just see!?_

She couldn't remember all of it. She had a hard time picturing the clothes, and she was sure the body had some hair left. But all she could vividly see was the flesh, bones, blood, and organs...the heart that was still beating...the raspy voice…

 _Who was...aghh!_

She brought her hands to her head in pain. A sharp spasm in her head, like several knives stabbing inside repeatedly, or someone groping the inside of her skull violently. She convulsed, her body rolling all over the...whatever she was laying on, as her mind seemed to try and incinerate the memories she tried to remember…

Then, as the pain spasmed one more time, she rolled off the surface and banged her head on the floor. In that small instant, the searing pain she felt throughout stopped, only to be replaced by a more tolerable soreness on the area where she hit her head.

"Oowww…" She sat up as she started to rub her head. "...Great, now I'm gonna have a headache for the rest of the day."

She felt her back rest itself on the side of the surface she just fell off of. Her head motioned back to look at it, then reached her hand to pull herself back up onto the surface-which she noticed was nothing more than a slab of rock jutting out of the ground-and sat on the edge as she looked at the environment around her.

It was a massive cavern, almost smoothed out and round. In the center was a platform jutting out from the ground-the area she was sitting in-connected by four bridges leading to four openings that more than likely led to different places. All of these were lit by still burning braziers, the flames emitted from inside a strange shade of red. Above the platform was a light that bathed the center, its colorless hue a stark contrast to the red fire surrounding it…

...And as she turned around to look at the rest, she saw it...a black and red, machine-like scythe embedded in a rock, a strange piece of paper wrapped around the shaft. Sitting right next to it was a large, rusted candelabra-like object holding several unlit torches in its arms.

She stared at the scythe for a minute, her mind trying to remember what it was called…

 _It's...Crescent Rose…_

She remembered almost everything about it, parts of its creation, the fact that it's a high-impact sniper rifle _as well_ as a scythe…

...She was shocked, to be honest. She was sure she would be back on the floor in a fetal position if she tried to remember…

 _At least I'm not on the floor...should I be glad or worried?_

She looked at it for a few more seconds before she recognized the piece of paper wrapped on it…

"What is that?"

She moved to stand...and almost fell flat on her face. She blinked, looking back at her legs…

 _...Ummm...Let's see...I'm sure I'm supposed to "walk." Yes, that's what it was, "walk." Right…_

Slowly, she got up, keeping a close eye on the floor in case she fell over again. When she managed to fully stand, she took a step forward…

...It...was surprisingly difficult, considering she almost fell over several times when she reached the weapon.

 _How long was I asleep for me to have trouble walking-seriously!?_

Taking a moment to rein in her frustration, she took another three steps before stopping in front of Crescent Rose.

 _Finally!_ She breathed a sigh of relief as she gripped one end of the paper and started to remove it from the shaft. After several seconds of struggling with one wrapped end of it, she finally managed to pull it off of her weapon easily. Sighing, she unwrapped the paper and started to read what was on the front…

 _ **Hello, young huntress, and now fellow Life-Eater…**_

 _I cannot tell you of your past, what you are, who you were before now, or if you have any loved ones. All I can tell you is your name, the name of the scythe this paper was left with, and your mission._

 _Your name is Ruby Rose, and the finely crafted scythe you'll find is named Crescent Rose. I do not know if you will remember it when you wake up, but I can tell you that it is one of the most precious things you would keep with you, along with the cloak you will be wearing when you wake up._

 _When you "do" wake up, you may ask yourself where you are and what to do next. You simply need to take a torch, light it from a brazier, and walk into one of the tunnels until you come out of the other side. Then, when you do...you need to prepare yourself for what may become…_

 _...A King is moving, the entire world his chessboard, and the darkness his chess pieces. He wishes to bring about things that would end the world as we knew it, and no one else can stop him from trying...except you._

 _He will send his forces after you. Prepare yourself and fight your way to checkmate. If you fail...then everything you have loved will die with the world._

 _I know it all seems sudden, but this is imperative. I will most likely be killed before I can even put up an adequate defensive measure, and that leaves you to continue on for me...please._

 _You are our last hope...don't let it wilt away…_

 _ **From,**_

 _ **Pr~~~~~ ~z~~~.**_

She reread the paper again.

 _S-Save the world...what...everyone I loved will die?_

She had no idea what the paper was talking about...in fact, it seemed to leave more questions than answers for her. Who's "King," what's a Life-Eater, what will happen to the world if this "King" isn't stopped? She had no clue whatsoever to any of it…

And yet...the name. It was thoroughly scribbled out, but she was sure that she had heard a similar name before...where had she heard it though, that was the _real_ question…

"...My name is Ruby Rose…" She read the paragraph with her name again...it was odd. Despite her remembering Crescent Rose, and the sharp feeling that she could remember the one who wrote the letter, she felt...nothing, when it came to her name…

 _Is that really my name?_

The sound of a far away cackle drove her out of her thoughts. Her eyes darted around the cavern, trying to locate the source of the noise...nothing. Just to make sure, she glanced around a little more to make sure no one was around.

 _Who was that?_

She looked around the cavern some more, before she shook her head and turned back to Crescent Rose. Slowly, her hand gripped the red and black weapon before her, and with some effort, she pulled the weapon out of the rock. She inspected it closely, instantly feeling a sense of nostalgia as she admired the blade and gun. It was like a member of the family had finally returned after leaving years ago…

"You're Crescent Rose...my weapon."

She smiled...she didn't know why, but she did. She quickly holstered it into its more compact travel form and hooked it up to her, before grabbing a torch from off the rusted candelabra.

She walked across the bridge nearest to her before stopping at the entranceway. She stared into it...seeing nothing but darkness beyond.

"Right...this shouldn't be a long walk...definitely!"

She raised the torch to a nearby brazier to light it, before walking further into the darkness beyond...perplexed and alone.

* * *

"Just how long is this thing!?"

Ruby was sure that she should've been out of this cavern by now. She would have walked up rows and rows of stairs by now, and more than likely would be out of this place by now…

...And was it just herself, or did she keep hearing voices around her in the darkness…

A raspy cackle echoed from her left, causing her to shift in that direction. "Who's there!?"

Once again-like the many times before-there was nothing more than silence.

 _Dammit, SOMEONE! Please, just show yourselves! I've been walking in this fucking darkness for whoever-knows-how long without a clue where I'm supposed to go!? WHERE THE FUCK AM I GOING!?_

A whisper passed her, followed by another, and another, and another…

"SHOW YOURSELF!"

...Until they were silenced, simply content to let her building anger simmer.

Ruby walked in one direction, then in an entirely different one, and another different one. She didn't find anything of note in any direction she went...and the voices she had been hearing for so long had disappeared.

Ruby's breathing, having picked up beforehand, slowed down more and more.

 _Calm down, Ruby. It's all just stupid sounds getting to you. Just calm down and it'll be alright. Just keep walking and it'll be alrig-_

" _ **Ruby Rose…"**_

Ruby twisted around, ready to smack something with the torch in her hand...and literally fell backwards as the sight of a wooden, slightly burned and beaten door appeared before her.

For the longest time, she stared at the door in disbelief. When had it appeared? She didn't remember running into it as she bumbled through the darkness, nor did she remember passing by it when she was walking. It was like the door had appeared out of nowhere!?

 _What...the hell?_

She got up and looked at the door, approaching it reluctantly as she took notice of the burns all over it, the scarring on the wood, even the wearing on the doorknob.

She stared at the knob like it was something ugly, something she didn't want to look at for so long that she was afraid it may jump at her for some reason. Reluctantly her hand reached for the brass doorknob. She gripped it, turned, and slowly opened the door…

...For the first time in how long, Ruby saw light pierce through. It blinded her first-she had to hold a hand out over her eyes for the first few minutes-but soon she was capable of seeing the room she entered without a problem.

It was a rather small room, with walls colored beige and dark grey. The sight of four red beds-one laying over a second with a broken leg, while another was broken cleanly in half-gave a good indication that it was a sort of dorm room of some kind. Several bookshelves sat either between or to the sides of them, the books ripped off, burned, or simply missing. A poster, originally showing off a rather popular group of guys, was missing its entire center-leaving only the top and bottom halves of the poster. The same could be said for a portrait on the wall to the left, completely ruined and torn to shreds. A red curtain that covered the window was torn and ripped from its hinges, leaving the light outside to burst through in full force. The only piece of furniture not destroyed or damaged completely was a wardrobe sitting near the door, its form relatively intact.

Ruby blinked and stood in front of the door as it closed behind her. She was legitimately confused now, was it that she was walking in circles through a completely darkened building?

And why did she get a vibe from this room? She didn't know why, but she found it incredibly familiar for some reason…

 _Have I...been here before?_

A subtle pain ached through her head. Ignoring it as best as she could, she walked around the room, looking at various other pieces that may jog her memory.

For a minute, nothing-save for the itch she had and the aching her head felt-gave her a sudden flash of insight or a memory that may help her. Sighing, she walked over to the nearby wardrobe and pulled on the drawer.

"Huh? This is…"

Several articles of clothing sat in the drawer, one which she noticed was the exact same as the outfit she was currently wearing sans the cloak. Blinking for a moment, she closed that drawer and opened several others to see what was inside. Sure enough, she found several pieces of clothing that she herself was wearing, even an extra belt of all things.

 _These are my clothes._

Her sight stayed on the wardrobe, before turning slowly to address the rest of the room, stopping at the four beds in the center of the room.

 _This was my room._

She looked at the two beds to the left. A white sheet and some rope was laying on top of what remained.

 _This was my bed._

She looked at the other two beds, one slumped over the other. Her eyes kept on both as she slowly walked closer to them.

 _And this...this is…_

For a minute, she was sure that she would finally remember something-about herself, whoever she knew, her past, whatever.

The searing pain that followed was inclined to disagree.

It came swiftly and left the same, but it was enough to send her reeling. She felt like someone just poured hot water over her brain, and she quickly gripped both sides of her head and yelled out in pain. It ended up so great that she nearly fell to her knees.

She panicked somewhat, spotted the door, ran towards it and slammed into it with all her weight and force. The door gave way, flying off its hinges as Ruby landed onto the ground outside the room.

Then, if ever so slowly, the pain receded. Ruby lay on the floor as her head started to return to a simple aching feeling from before.

 _My...head...fuck…_

Ruby sat up, placing a hand over her face, her breathing getting heavier by the minute.

She had no idea what had just happened. She was just trying to remember something, but when she did her head seemed like someone was digging her brains out with a pair of hot tongs. Would this happen to her if she tried again? What would she do then? Wasn't trying to remember the past the only thing that she could do?

Her thoughts drifted from one question to another, then another, and another…

 _Who am I really? What the heck is going on? What do_ _ **I get to rip apart?**_ _Am I alone in this place? Can I_ _ **butcher them like pigs**_ _if there are? Why am I thinking these things? Why are you_ _ **hesitating to kill?**_

 _W-Wha…_

 _ **Do you smell prey?**_ _Is there anything of value in that room? Why don't I just_ _ **burn it to the fucking ground**_ _? Whose bed's are those?_ _ **Are you afraid of pain?**_ _**Are you afraid of loss?**_ _Do I really not remember anything but my name?_ _ **Wouldn't you rather forget it all?**_

 _What the hell is this...it's like something's talking to me…_

 _Am I growing hungry?_ _ **Do you smell the stench of blood?**_ _Why is the_ _ **hallway different?**_ _Can I even survive in this place?_ _ **Are you willing to kill? Weren't you already a killer anyway?**_ _Why is the_ _ **hallway different?**_ _Where am I? What is this place?_ _ **Do you think intestines look delicious?**_ _Is the only way out_ _ **to rip and tear them limb from limb?**_ _Who am I?_ _ **Who are you?**_

 _ **Why is the hallway different?**_

The thought hit Ruby like a train. Her eyes opened wide as her hand slowly fell limp and into her lap. She looked up and turned slowly, taking in exactly what she was seeing…

...The hallway was entirely different from where she originally came from. Walls colored grey-some of which were crumbling, revealing the light from outside-led down one far intersection at one end, and at another opposite that side. It wasn't a cavern, the light was shining in between the breaks of the hallway, and there were other doors-some of which were bashed down, broken, or missing completely.

"...H-How...How did…"

Ruby Rose was stunned. There was no possible way she could be in a hallway like this, she didn't even remember seeing any other doorways.

 _How is this possible?_

Her thought's were interrupted by the abrupt sound of a wall breaking behind her. Her head turned to look behind…

...It was like the thing of nightmares. A large, blackened beast with red eyes whose form was akin to those of a wolf. It's size was double that of hers, standing completely on its hind legs like it was giving a serious implication along the lines of " _I can walk. Therefore I can stomp you into a reddened paste."_

It had several parts of the body covered with a bone-like armor, and several spikes were jutting out from its arm and down his back. It had several scars, but the one that she could see prominently was a large gash going down the entire left side of its face, leaving one of its eyes dulled…

...And, also visible-maybe even more than the scar-was the razor sharp row of teeth sitting in its maw.

For a straight second, the two stared at each other, slight disbelief running through the both of them. Then, with reflexes impossible for normal wildlife to emulate, the beast inched slightly forward and swung its arm into her ribcage.

She went flying back into the room, crashing through the window to the outside world, hitting a stone pillar on her way down.

She was reeling, even as she slammed into the ground below. She bounced once before rolling a few feet from the crater she just left, and in that instant, pain spasmed through her body...debilitating, excruciating pain.

" **AAGGHHH!** " Her breathing became heavy as she gripped her side in pain. She looked down at where she had been hi- **good god, how the fuck was she still alive!**

At least a significant chunk of her waist had been ripped away, as muscle and flesh exposed itself and an organ or two was left lying on the hard cobblestone. Whatever bone there originally was in that area was now nothing more than splinters piercing what was left of her lower torso.

She puked-a mix of vomit and blood spurting from out of her mouth onto the sidewalk. Her mind raced in panic as her body made an effort to move...and fail horribly in the process.

 _Gotta get up! Get moving, get moving NOW!_

She heard the sounds of claws meeting stone, followed by stone fracturing underneath something. She motioned her head to see what it all was…

There were seven of the black, wolf-like creatures-one of which being the one that ambushed her earlier. It's mouth and claws dripped blood as it munched on something...more than likely what it just ripped from her stomach.

She tried to force herself to stand, but even the strength in her arm had given out. The extreme loss of blood started to work her over, to the point she couldn't think straight.

Her vision flickered, almost going black as she tried to crawl to freedom…

 _Move...I can't die yet. I need to-GAAGH!_

One of the beasts large paws slammed down on her shin. She was pretty sure she could almost hear the bones breaking...at least if that was bones breaking and her voice not screaming in pain.

Her body shook as she layed there. Her breathing was heavy, broken and raspy. She was also sure that whatever she had left for organs were slowly drowning in blood, filling and filling until they were ready to burst.

Ruby was slowly realizing...realizing that this would only end in the worst possible conclusion. As her world slowly faded to black and white, her mind repeated a single sentence repeatedly.

 _I don't want to die._

 _I don't...WanT to DIe._

 _I DoN'T Wantt...TO die._

 _I...don't want...to die._

Her world faded to black…

…

 **Then KILL THEM!**

* * *

Beowolves...a subspecies of the creatures of Grimm. Foul beasts born of nothing but hatred and attracted to hatred from sentient creatures. They have hunted, killed, and feasted on humans and faunus since time immemorial.

This subspecies was possibly the second weakest of them all, but made up for it in numbers-hunting in packs at the best to make sure success (and their next meal) were in reach…

...This pack today had found a particularly tasty-looking morsel. A young human girl in a red cloak. It was already half eaten, but there was enough for all of them to feast on…

...So why did its corpse give them pause for some reason? It was already dead-its life snuffed out from one powerful swing...so why?

One eager beowolf seemed content to answer the question, as it approached the corpse reluctantly. It moved closer and closer until it stood over her, its red, glowing eyes keeping a steady eye for sudden movement.

It came closer, sniffing her over, before deducing that it was safe to chomp down on. It slowly opened its jaw and positioned it's head over one of her arms…

It didn't stand a chance.

The beowolf didn't even see the reaction as the girl's hand gripped on a rectangular shape attached to her waist. Her finger pulled on something, and in half a second at least half the top of the beast's head was grazed off from the shot that flew over it. It staggered away from the girl, who soon flipped horizontally-her weapon flying in the air as her body spinned in one swift motion. The beast couldn't react as it was cleaved in half by her weapon, blood erupting from out of where it used to be a full beast.

The rest roared as the beast hit the floor, but their reaction time was subpar. The second beowolf had the scythe blade embedded in its chest, and it could barely let out a howl before the girl pulled the trigger, which had the blade shoot upward. The beast split in half vertically from the chest, a disturbing amount of blood bursting from the beast's wound.

The girl wasn't done. Following up on this, she flipped vertically towards a third beowolf, who raised an arm to attack. The girl went through the limb like paper, stopping just a few feet behind the beast. Before the Grimm could even turn its head, she pulled the trigger once again on the scythe, bisecting the Beowolf from the waist down. The beast let out a grating scream as blood only filled its sight.

Stopping the spin from the previous blow she turned to the fourth and fifth, who started rushing towards her-eyes filled with hatred and maws snarling with vehement. She angled her weapon and fired behind her, launching herself forward. The fourth could only see a blade getting stuck at its neck before the girl pulled the trigger, decapitating it. Following on this, she spinned again, twirling the weapon with her as she swung it towards the fifth's head. It didn't even fall down as its head flew off, only standing up for a few minutes before its body met with the earth-leaving a splash of blood from its neck as it did.

The girl jumped up in the air towards the sixth Beowolf, bringing the blade down. However, before metal could meet flesh, the beast-with reflexes only seen by humans-caught the blade in midair…

...It was unknown if this beowolf was more intelligent-and therefore older-or if what was happened was simply a fluke on its part. Nonetheless, it capitalized on this moment, pulling the weapon-and the girl with it-towards him. Then he swung outward, catching the girl on the cheek with a backhand.

The girl flew several feet away before skidding onto the ground. Shaking off the sudden break in rhythm, she turned back to the sixth…

...Only to have her own weapon fly straight into her own chest. Her body followed with the motion of the scythe, flying a fair feet away before landing on her back.

For a single, relieving moment the sixth and seventh beowolf could almost sigh in relief that they managed to survive the massacre that just happened. The sixth turned its head towards the girl and stomped towards her…

...Until she stood up like nothing had happened to her, the sound of bone fracturing coming from her. She gripped the weapon and, with some effort, pulled the blade from her chest. Then she turned towards the Beowolf, which started to back away in fear...it would never get the chance to.

The girl disappeared from the beast's sight in a breeze of rose petals. The beast could never see the attack that came afterwards, nor react in time to stop or dodge it. It could only stand there like a deer in headlights as she disappeared from its sight and flashed straight behind her. It couldn't do much as a thin vertical red line appeared over its body, immediately followed by several others that appeared over its body. It could only turn in time to look the girl straight in the eyes before it's body essentially exploded in a torrent of Grimm flesh and blood.

The seventh Beowolf-the very same one that ambushed her earlier-could only stare at her in fear, before it realized that it literally bit off more than it could chew. Deciding to lick its wounds and fight for another day, it turned and ran in the opposite direction…

...It didn't get very far…

It felt a sharp pain around its leg followed by a strange numbness. It looked down...seeing that at least half of its leg was missing from the knee down. Roaring outward as it fell down onto the sidewalk, it clawed anxiously at the sidewalk as it tried to get away. It was only after it turned back to the girl did it stop.

She stood over it, looking down into the eyes of the beast. The beast did the same, and realized the fear the sixth had seen when it looked upon her…

Her eyes were dead, filled with no remorse, no fear, no empathy...no life. It was like staring back into the abyss the beast itself had been born from.

The two stared at each other, doing nothing...then the beast tried to swing at her. It lost its arm in the process, and as it howled out in pain the second arm came afterwards. With nothing to defend itself with, the beast could only watch as she raised her scythe, took a steady breath, and brought the scythe down once...twice...and again…

...And again...and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, **and again, and again, and again, and again, and again…**

...Until finally she stopped, pulling back the blade to have a look at her handywork-nothing more than a puddle of blood and beast flesh.

Taking another steady breath, the girl stood there for a moment before falling to her knees. She looked up at the cloudy sky with her deadened eyes, and a smile spread across her face.

She spread her arms outward. For a minute, nothing happened...then the blood around her...started to act up.

It shifted towards her, regardless of the wedges between the cobblestone that would've guided it in specific directions. Soon it moved up her body towards whatever wounds she had-including the cheek and half the destroyed waist. Then it began to condense within these wounds, and the flesh, muscle and skin knitted itself back together...until it was all healed, like nothing had happened to it…

...The entire process would hurt like hell…if the girl was conscious enough to even _feel pain_ , that is…

The girl remained where she was, in the very same position, with the very same smile, even as the rain was ready to fall...and even as she was near the corpses of beasts.

The rain started soon after, and the girl woke from death…

* * *

Ruby could only remember blacking out from pain earlier, then waking up in the rain as it soaked her. She blinked a few times as rain droplets fell onto her face before bringing her hands to her head.

 _What just happened?_

She didn't remember what had happened after blacking out, only that she thought she was gonna die. Did the beasts lose interest?

She slowly brought her head down from staring at the sky. She shook her head, before realizing one thing…

 _I'm outside...what's it like out here?_

She looked out away from wherever she was. It was hard to see due to the rain obscuring a lot of the world, but Ruby could make out...something…

 _Where am I now?_

She motioned herself to stand...until her hand touched something thick-thicker than water at the very least. She looked down...and froze.

Surrounding her was a slowly dissipating pool of blood. Sitting in various parts of the pool were the remains of the black beasts from earlier-heads, arms, upper torsos, and one incredibly eviscerated body. Ruby stared at the bloodbath in front of her, her breath growing quicker by the second.

Reluctantly, she looked down at her own hands...They were covered in blood. And sitting right next to her-colored in sanguine-was Crescent Rose…

 _...I...I killed…_

She screamed...the realization having dawned on her in the rain.

* * *

The next day, she would find that the entire town was nothing more than a necropolis of what previously existed there. The entire town empty and abandoned from those that lived and breathed.

Once again, she screamed...and then cried herself to a slumber afterwards, simply wondering what was going on…

...And unbeknownst to her, two forces were watching. One was a group of two who watched the scene unfold with a cold, calculated sight, one wanting to kill her and be done, the other simply content to be patient. The second was much farther and more massive.

To many, it would simply look like a large crow from the distance. However, many would actually figure it as a Nevermore, another subspecies of Grimm.

With one eye, it watched from afar-watching her suffering, her bloody battle, and everything else. Then, content for the two days...it flew away, patient in its wait to see Ruby Rose suffer…

...And slowly-ever so slowly-the rose started to wilt...the first petals of many falling away into the cold wind…

* * *

 **Right, that wasn't exactly the best wait time...but then again it's better than possibly four months or so…**

 **Yep, this is a chapter from Ruby's viewpoint. For those that were wondering where Ruby would tie into the story for the last two chapters, this is a taste of what could be happening in the future.**

 **Now many of you may say "Isn't this chapter a little shorter than the last one?" I will say yes, but...if I were to be honest, I think that's a good place to stop for now...and it leaves one heck of a cliffhanger too.**

 **Oh yeah, so now I'm getting the Grimm involved into the story. Many of you will notice that the Grimm actually bleed and don't dissolve (or whatever the fuck they actually do) when fighting Ruby here. I won't say much else, but I will confirm that this little fact is a plot point later in the story.**

 **So now, with that all out of the way...how did you all feel about the chapter. Did you like it, did you hate it, was something just getting to you throughout. Well, if you want to share these things with me...THEN REMEMBER TO REVIEW!**

 **Let me also say that the next chapter I do may not be related to this story. I've recently been getting into Metal Gear Solid 5 (A Hideo Kojima Game, Fuck Konami!) and am pretty much enjoying it so far (I suck at FOB infiltrations).**

 **So without further ado, let me say thank you for reading, and I hope to see you on the next chapter.**

 **Next Chapter: Inverted colors.**

 **For Fun, Fedora's and Insanity...PEACE!**


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